Sustainable supply chains: Tesco is next to take Loop packaging

Sustainability is procurement’s “burning platform”, according to Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-CEO of EcoVadis.

Procurement professionals are in an ideal position to address sustainability issues as supply chain is the biggest lever for change, says Thaler, who recommends working with suppliers, collaborating to reach truly innovative solutions. And he points to two examples of businesses working together successfully to achieve specific aims:

LoopLoop is a collaborative scheme, a ‘first-of-its-kind’ shopping and recycling platform that has enabled FMCG companies including P&G, Unilever, Mondelez, Nestle and Danone to work with recycling company TerraCycle to achieve more sustainable packaging solutions for their products.

It is a way to “responsibly consume products in specially-designed durable, reusable or fully recyclable packaging made from materials like alloys, glass and engineered plastics,” explains TerraCycle CEO Tom Szaky.

Consumers can shop on the Loop website for products in waste-free, durable packaging. They are delivered in a durable shipping bag, and when finished, the packaging is collected by Loop and replenished, replaced or recycled.

Already live in the US and France, Tesco is set to launch with it in March in the UK.

Tech against traffickingBT, Microsoft and Nokia are collaborating with the United Nations to combat human trafficking in supply chains, looking at ways to improve and develop technology such as blockchain and apps for members of the public to monitor and report suspected instances of modern slavery.